We will use funnels, soda bottles, and a toy called a Tornado Tube to explore the concepts of moment of inertia, rotational motion, angular momentum, kinetic and potential energy, and air pressure in an attempt to discover and explain the physics of a rather complex hydrodynamic system.
Required Equipment
Plastic Funnel, Stopwatch, Vortex Tube, Materials for Designing a Funnel, 2 Empty Soda Bottles, Water Source, Large Tub or Sink.
Required Equipment
Acknowledgements: Thank you to Dr. J.R. Harkay author ofPhenomenal Physics for providing this student inquiry activity.Adapted from "Twister! Tornado in a Bottle," an Inquiry Exercise by J. R. Harkay. See www.PhenomenalPhysics.com for more information on the complete Guided Inquiry Curriculum.
